Blogging

TESTAMENT TO THE TRUTH

Where has writing a daily blog in 2015 got me? I can't say I've accrued any additional wealth on a financial standing BUT, I have gained a wealth of information about myself and what I need to focus on next year in order to get somewhere in life.

Taking pen to paper or the virtual pen to the screen via a blog, has arguably been the best thing I've done to date. I've had a lot of fun times and I'm fortunate to say there's been a good deal of love, success and happiness over the years. However, we can all get a bit lost or caught up in the day to day dealings in life and suddenly start to question where we are heading? What's our purpose/our calling, and is there even any purpose to it all??? I guess some would call it a mid-life episode, but really, apart from letting go of the frivolities of youth, why do we have to change our ways anyway? Can't we carry on living and appreciating the life we have?

I believe we get too autonomous as we get older - too stuck in our ways. Some of the things we are doing are not good for our health or spiritual development - and if we allow them to go on, we could reach a point of despair later on down the road. This is where taking the time to write down our thoughts and learnings comes in to play. We can monitor just where the time is being spent and work out how best to make the most of the limited time that we have remaining.

All we have to do is to sit down on our own in the mornings and dedicate 20 minutes or so to write out our thoughts. Better still, use the Blogger iPhone app and add to the blog as you go about your day.

10 Day Countdown
It seems hard to believe that I'm just 10 days away from my yearly goal of writing consecutively for 365 days. I couldn't have foreseen this day or even believed it would have been possible, but here I am. It's a real testament to the fact that we just have to take small steps and believe in what we are doing. It's going to be a real eye opener looking back at what my thoughts have been and I very much look forward to the 1st day in January where I'll make my pledges for continuing my quest throughout 2016. 

Pockets And Jackets

KEY KEEPERS

I really don't like losing things but it happens to us all from time to time. To avoid this from occurring, the key is to limit the risk. I'm going to say this, in the hope I never have to back track...I have never lost a wallet or keys, or a phone for that matter. 

The reason why, I follow a routine and always keep the keys, wallet and phone in the same places. That way, I know where they are at all times. But, if I'm going to lose a wallet or keys, I want to limit the losses as much as possible. So, I rarely carry much cash in my wallet and pretty much keep the contents to a basic minimum. Bank cards, ID/licence, gym card and £20 cash. That's it.

I also keep my keys to a minimum. I never take a massive bunch of keys around with me. My keys are kept in groups. House keys, bike lock keys, car keys, garage keys. I add or subtract as necessary. If I travel, I take just the door keys. On the door keyring is a little engraved plaque with my phone number and email address. Worse case scenario, I misplace a set of door keys and someone will hopefully see the contact details or it's only £10 to replace them. 

I always put my keys in the same place on the dresser every night. Otherwise, they stay in the front right pocket of my trousers or shorts. I never carry them in a jacket pocket. Same goes for wallet. As I only ever carry the bare essentials, my wallet is small enough to fit in my front right or back right pocket, I never need to stick either of these valuables in a jacket. 

Lost Property

The amount of times I've lost or left a jacket somewhere - countless. Lost property is full of them. Hence why I never carry my stuff in a jacket pocket. It's a no brainer really, travel light and keep the important things close to hand. Simple. And yet I know quite a few friends who, on a seemingly regular basis, lose phones, wallets and keys - and of course their jackets too. 

The Value And Excellence Scale

QUALITY NEEDS VALUES

Revisiting Georgham - another favourite spot in North Devon this week, we were again reminded about the 'UP' and 'UP AND OVER' theory that I proposed at the start of the trip.

On this journey, it's been clearly shown where some places have continued to thrive while others have lost out to complacency. Reliance on previous good ratings must be a common problem for many establishments. If they seemingly drop the ball for even a moment to allow disgruntled customers to leave a low rating on Trip Advisor, it can mean a decline in visitors & revenue - which then has a knock-on effect with the quality of staff employed and further adds to the downfall of a potentially great establishment as they struggle to cope with tired, over-worked, under-qualifies staff. 

We witnessed this effect recently at one place where they clearly failed to appreciate the relevance of leadership - leaving inexperienced staff at the helm in the True Lovers Knot), who didn't pay heed to the small details (bizarrely, replacing loo rolls is high on the list for complaints on Trip Advisor) and lost focus on the fact that the customer is always right. It's amazing what a complimentary desert or drink on the house can do to correct a minor - or even a major niggle - yet this has rarely been offered in the places where I've had to speak up lately.  

It's not just the establishments that fail to recognise leadership and over-delivering on service for retaining happy punters, it can also catch out the long established venues too. So many places think that having good reviews entitles them to hike up the prices. They need to retain a measure of humbleness like Pumblechooks do - a particular favourite of mine in East London, yet they get above themselves time and again. This is a big problem for a lot of places that I've frequented over the years and why very very few stay 'UP' (certainly in my estimations) for very long. 

It's a fine balance giving quality and value at the same time. The Kings Head in Hursley had it but alas, has it no more. But the Kings Arms in Georgham had - and still has it 10 years on. It's a real achievement, even with new management and so many different staff over the years, to retain the core values that mean this place can provide such a high level of quality food & drink. And all delivered with consistently great service at such great value, in comparison to the many other over-priced places around today and likely, not tomorrow. 

Old Fashioned Fun

THE LAST BASTION

Some places never change. And that can be a great thing if you just want to go somewhere you know and love like the Palm Tree pub in the east end of London or The White Heart pub in Truro.

Both of these venues offer a beautiful venue that hasn't had the soul sucked out of it through modernisation, aren't trying to be a restaurant and consistently lay on the same great friendly service and entertainment that they do well week after week. 

That entertainment might mean a jazz band with the same antiquated musicians & singers or DJ playing the same 80's and 90's tracks - but if what it offers makes us smile, tap our feet or dance up a storm - making the old feel young again and bringing all generations together for a night of good old fashioned fun - then it's got to be fully recognised for this fantastic achievement - and being one of only a few remaining places to survive the test of time.  

We really have to be thankful to these publicans like Gary & Brenda for their 17 years of dedication and give them our support where we can by turning up, drinking a bit too much, hugging strangers and dancing like it's 1999.

Shared Accommodation

A HOME FROM HOME

On a wet and busy Saturday in Cornwall - right in the middle of the summer school holidays, finding a decent, good value place to stay can be difficult to get last minute. That's where my first experience of airbnb came in.

Air BnB is relatively new and the opportunity for us all to discover something a bit different, is now literally right there in the palm of our hands! I look forward to making the most of this power to select great places to stay in the very near future..

BBH - New Zealand
A forum for finding and staying in peoples homes is nothing new, as I recall from my own fantastic experience travelling around New Zealand back in 2000. In 2015, with the internet being so prevalent and easy to find interesting places to stay, BBH still has an extensive listing of quirky places to explore staying at in New Zealand. It's arguably still the most established and largest of it's kind in New Zealand, with carefully chosen, quirky properties to stay at - all graded by the people staying there. With Air BnB now also on offer, this will offer even more chances to find those special places - travelling off the beaten track has never been so exciting.

All in all, I loved my travels back in 2000. it was a great experience that I'd happily take again given the opportunity. Looking back the places I stayed at and seeing them still featured in the top 80-100% top listings, I'm pleased for the owners that they've managed to retain such consistency. The top listing is still at the top even today - that's a real feat! Hopewells, Marlborough Sounds, NZ deserves to be at the top - it was an amazing place.

On The Up

HIDDEN GEMS

If you are looking for a great place to stay and eat while on your travels, some of Britain's history-rich country Inns are arguably amongst the best in the world for offering friendly service, comfortable accommodation and sumptuous fare. 

Driving through quaint villages on medieval coach roads - long since used as major routes and passed over by the masses on busy motorways, these long-standing abodes are the little gems where that bit of magic awaits those who venture out along the roads less travelled. 

The Roads To Discovery

There's something very special about that feeling we get, stumbling across a new place never visited or known about before. Having a 'discovery' moment is up there as one of my greatest feelings as it ignites the adventurer spirit in me. It's not that these ancient places haven't been around for hundreds of years before hand, but the feeling that you've 'found' this special place - a diamond in the rough, a sanctuary for the weary in that time of need - feeds a satisfaction that expectations can never deliver. 

Great Expectations

When something is really good - the hardest thing possible is to keep it consistently up there. Renowned chefs like Gordon Ramsey, who are furiously working at very high levels under close scrutiny, will vouch for this. The fact is, very few can keep to these sustained levels, especially in the food and hospitality industry. There are just too many variables to consider and it's almost impossible to deliver consistently over and over again, keeping everyone happy all of the time. That's why discovery delivers positive results over expectation fro delivery the vast majority of the time. 

Up and over

The places that I consider to be the best - are either those that offer such good value for their modestly understated excellence (like a simple cafe called Pumblechooks in Wapping does consistently well) or those that are working fervently towards it and therefore deserve accolade for their passion attaining it. These are the the 'UP' or the 'ON THE UP' places that we seek. 

Diminishing returns

Because I find the thrill of discovery so rewarding, I refrain from going back to the same places for fear of diminishing a special memory. There's so many new discoveries to be made, why be lazy and relive something that can't possibly deliver the same or better quality as first experienced? 

There are exceptions to the rule however - and these places just have something that much more to give, that they can be visited 2, 3 or more times without losing their appeal - but they are very rare. One such place that we love, is The Kings Arms in Hurley. An Inn located near Winchester, steeped in British history, connected to Cromwell and royalty. 

However, as with many great discoveries, they eventually get discovered by the masses. They peak to greatness and eventually fall to complacency - and hence, the magic inevitably diminishes. It's strange, but you can actually feel the spark has gone the moment you arrive in a diminishing 'UP AND OVER' place, as we did today. Under new management means on this occasion that the person holding the magic has moved on to pastures new. It's saddening but as a chapter closes on this once great place, the quest for discovering an exciting new 'UP' place begins once again. 

Practicing Daily Rituals

MORNING RITUALS SET UP YOUR DAY

If you start the day on the right track - the rest of your day has a better chance of success. Try forming morning habits and rituals that you can stick to and they will help with forming other positive habits. I watched a few video clips on martial arts yesterday and became really interested in learning more about harnessing life energy (Chi or Qi). I'm now doing this 10 minute QiGong morning practice (below) every morning. I'll be checking my local yoga centre for when the Qigong sessions are on - looking at doing a couple of classes to complement the yoga as it really seems to help get the body energised.

Qigong Master
If you want to see what powers harnessing Qi energy can give us, do a few internet searches. I watched this video clip on Qi the other day and now have the 4-part series called: The Ring of Fire in my list of things to watch. One of the series talks about this martial arts master John Chang (video below) who uses Qi to heal people - amazing footage....